The Whispering Innocence
by GaleBread
Summary: Abandoned
1. Encounter

_**The Whispering Innocence**_

_A Mahou Sensei Negima (Magister Negi Magi) Fanfiction_

_By GaleBread_

_I do not own Mahou Sensei Negima (Though I wish I do). This is a work of Fanfiction and the materials are used without permission. All characters and settings of Mahou Sensei Negima are the property of Ken Akamatsu; no profits are made from this fictional work. Gale (His current Alias being Kazami Kazehiro) belongs to GaleBread._

* * *

**Chapter 1: Encounter**

Frantic footsteps could be heard as a man ran desperately away from the dark alley and what lurked within, desperately towards the safety of the lighted streets, constantly casting nervous glances back into the darkness behind him.

A small zipping sound hissed out as something snaked around the man's waist, crushing the man's spine and rendering him paralysed, before quickly pulling the barely struggling man back into the darkness within the alley. Screams accompanied by various sickening sounds rang through the tight, thin lane as the man fell victim to the predator. Silence befell the gap between buildings.

Moonlight shone through the parting clouds down towards the alleyway, revealing the ghastly scene with ghostly light. Bits and pieces of fragmented bodies lay on top of massive pools of blood, the walls stained with the dark red liquid, and at the centre between the torn remains stood a lonely figure, basking in the rare light of the full moon.

Gradually illuminated by the moon, the outline of the figure became clearer. The natural curves of the silhouette identifies the person as a female, and as the clouds blocking the light eased away, features of the unmoving woman could be seen. She appeared to be no more than eighteen years old, and wears a long-sleeved white turtleneck, a long blue skirt and a pair of black high-heeled boots, her clothing now stained with the drying blood of the dead, whereas her dark boots glimmered with a dull red colour. Her skin, partially tainted with red, revealed a smooth milky colour. Her shoulder-length hair illuminated by the moonlight, glittered with silver and red. Her face, now blood-stained, held a rare beauty unlike many. Her claw-liked hands, painted in scarlet, rest freely next to her body. Her head cocked slightly towards the skies, facing the moon, and under a lock of silver hair, a pair of golden eyes glowed without emotion. The young woman stood silently, her form resembling a fallen angel under the pale light.

The woman remained still, as if lost within her own world. Then, slowly, she lifted her right hand towards her face, positioned one of her fingertips next to her mouth. She licked a small droplet of the crimson liquid that rested on her finger, tasted it a bit, before lowering her hand back to its original place. She shook her head slightly, and with a quite voice, muttered out a few words, before looking back at the closing clouds that began to cover up the fading moon.

"Too salty." And with that, the moon was consumed by the passing clouds.

When a stray ray of moonlight escaped through a gap between the clouds and emitted a short glint upon the alleyway moments later, all that remained were the broken bodies of the deceased.

* * *

The ringing of the bell resonated throughout Mahora Academy, signalling the end of the period and the start of lunch. Students rushed out of their classrooms and went onto their separate activity. Teachers who were assigned patrol duties quickly returned to the staff's lounge and consumed a quick meal, then with swift movements made their way to their posts, while those who were spared such a fate made their way to the lounge in a more relaxing pace.

Negi Springfield had just finished correcting the test papers he had given to his class earlier in the day, and he frowned when he reviewed the general performance of his class. While the scores of most of the students had improved slightly, the same cannot be said for the five Baka Rangers, especially for Asuna, who had achieved a score of one out of twenty, a record low for this year.

Negi sighed, it seems without supervision Asuna's and the rest of the Baka Rangers' score would plummet in a downward spiral, and as their teacher he had the obligation to help them achieve a better mark. He was, of course, very willing to answer such obligations, yet other than the fact of being a Magister Magi in training, he was no different than any other normal human, and as such had his limits. Feeling tired out, he put down the test he was holding and decided to take a walk around the academy.

He carefully stacked the marked test onto a neat pile on his desk, before strapping his staff securely on his back. He then pushed his chair under his desk before moving towards the lounge door and headed out towards the academy grounds.

Just as he closed the door, another teacher in the lounge turned on the radio to listen to the news.

"The Japanese Police Department had already closed off the area; this is the third case in a month. According to the information we've gathered, it seemed that all victims were torn apart while alive, and apparently their spines were snapped before they were brutally killed. Another bizarre fact was that the amount of blood found on the crime scene of each case was apparently less than normal, suggesting that the killer or killers might be collecting their blood. So far we have no information as to the reasons of such acts, nor do we know who were responsible for such violent crime. We have linked up the three cases and believe that the killing seems to be going in a north-east direction. We will continue to gather resources and hopefully we could find something that would lead us to the truth. This is Emiya Mitsuomi in Akiruno reporting. Next up, th-"

The teacher turned the radio off, then looked out the window with a worried look.

"Akiruno…so close…"

* * *

The sun was shining brightly upon the large city-size grounds of Mahora Academy, making the day seem hotter than usual.

Walking slowly down the small dirt path near the forest entrance and taking a couple of deep breaths, Negi was enjoying the rare moments of peacefulness since he had accepted his position as a teacher of 3-A almost a year ago. He wiped off a few droplets of sweat that formed on his forehead during his walk and stopped in front of a large tree on the side, deciding that it would be prime time for him to rest a bit under the shaded area he quickly removed his staff from his back and placed it on the ground, before sitting down under the shadow himself. He looked at the time on his watch and noticed that he would be free for the next few hours. Having decided to take advantage of this he shuffled around until he felt comfortable, before slowly shutting his eyes and took a nap.

Negi woke up with a jolt as he became aware of the decreasing temperature. Noticing the sun had started to set he hastily checked the time, before letting a small gasp escape his throat. He had a class in fifteen minutes and he was at least twenty minutes away from the classrooms even if he ran in full speed. His mind went quickly into overdrive as a battle of thoughts raged within his brain. On one hand he was getting late and he would never forgave himself if he had failed to be on time, and on the other hand he had to kept his magic as secretive as possible, and flying at top speed through the open grounds of Mahora Academy would hardly be secretive. Still unable to decide he quickly checked his time again, letting out a moan of despair as he now had only ten minutes left, and even with magic he would had a hard time making it on time.

Without many choices left Negi hurriedly stood up, grabbed his staff, turned around…and bumped straight into someone, luckily he fell onto a conveniently placed patch of bush, thus saving him from having a painful bottom.

"S-Sorry!!" Negi quickly stood up and start apologising with ninety-degree bows. He stole a glance at the person when he realised there was no answer or any sort of gesture, and stared in confusion. Whoever he had bumped into was now gone without a trace, and he had not heard the person leave. Suddenly remembering his situation Negi immediately discarded his confusion, sat himself on his staff and flew off.

Right after Negi flew off a young man with combed, downwardly spiked dark brown hair appeared from the bush he was bumped into earlier and started patting the dust and dirt off him. He gazed at the quickly diminishing form of Negi on his staff before he start following in Negi's general direction.

Negi had made a last ditched effort by flying straight into the main building and up through the stairs while carefully kept himself hidden near the ceiling, successfully making it on time as the bell rang just as he stepped into the classroom. His students looked at him oddly and Negi soon realised his condition, before quickly straightening his clothes and getting everything back in order. His face flushed a little from embarrassment. He quickly flipped open the text book he had kept in the desk drawer and began his afternoon classes.

Everything seems to be back to normal.

Well, as normal as it could be anyway.

Near the forest exit the brown haired man stumbled out from the surrounding bushes, he looked around his surroundings before quickly pat the dusts collected on the way off of him. He then started walking towards the closest building he could find. A wooden cottage that was surrounded by the very forest he just exited.

_

* * *

Well here ends the very first chapter of the very first fanfiction story I've wrote, I hope anyone who reads it enjoys what I've written. As this is my first fic I'm sure there would be a lot of flaws and mistakes, so any constructive criticism are appreciated. It might take awhile before I would update this so anyone who might be interested in reading a continuation chapter will probably have to wait awhile. Sorry for the inconvenience. ;)_


	2. Peaceful Turmoil

_**The Whispering Innocence**_

_A Mahou Sensei Negima (Magister Negi Magi) Fanfiction_

_By GaleBread_

_I do not own Mahou Sensei Negima (Though I wish I do). This is a work of Fanfiction and the materials are used without permission. All characters and settings of Mahou Sensei Negima are the property of Ken Akamatsu; no profits are made from this fictional work. Gale (His current Alias being Kazami Kazehiro) belongs to GaleBread._

Author's Note: Ugh…finally got the time to finish this chapter…had to remind myself that schoolwork compiled with part-time job, sports club trainings, driving lessons and school sport trainings are not a pretty combo…okay, alright, I admit it's just me being lazy…but everyone needed a little free time to do something else right? Well, at any rate, I do hope everyone enjoys this update.

**Update** Thanks 2remember for informing me about a mistake I've made, I've now corrected it.

* * *

**Chapter 2: Peaceful Turmoil**

Something stirred in the shadows.

"Is it done?" A hollow voice rang out from within the depths of the darkness, its sound resonating throughout the seemingly empty room.

"Yes." A female replied, appearing without any signs.

"Good." The voice hissed, "Continue."

"Understood."

The female disappeared without a trace, as if she was never there.

Shadows shifted, a pair of glowing red eyes emerged from it.

"It is…undeniable…"

* * *

Leaves rustled as the evening wind continues its soft rhythms. Within the cottage, a warm flame flickered and cackled softly in the fireplace. A child-like occupant inside the small house stirred a cup of tea absent-mindedly, her mind drifted off into worn-out memories as she waited.

Chachamaru was working on her normal routine of cleaning the cottage when her sensors picked up an unfamiliar signal. She stopped her action, and turned towards the child.

"Master." She called; her voice emotionless. The child stopped stirring; a cheerless smile appeared on her face.

"Ah, finally."

After taking a small sip of tea, Evangeline placed the cup down onto the plate and slowly stood up, then leisurely walked to the front door with Chachamaru following behind her.

The cloaked man stopped in his track and looked up aimlessly for a brief moment, then started up the wooden steps. Standing on the front porch and in front of the door, he knocked once. The door swung open and two female, a child and a teenager with weird ear decorations, appeared.

"You sure are taking your sweet time." The child sneered, "So, who're you, muppet?" she questioned nonchalantly, uncaring of whatever answer she would get. However, her voice still had a chilling effect that made the man wince slightly, and she had her arms crossed in front of her chest as she glared at him with a smirk, her face showing clearly the distrust and disgust she held towards the anonymous man standing on her front porch.

The teenage girl with weird ear decorations behind her simply stared impassively at the man, and none of them moved for a short while. Life only returned when the man smiled slightly and broke the silence.

"I'm...ah...Kazami Kazehiro. Nice to meet you." He bowed his head a little, his voice slightly wobbly, as if being uncertain of something.

The child rolled her eyes and scowled with annoyance, clearly not impressed by Kazehiro's rather bad acting. "Why it's not nice to meet you too, latecomer. Please try acting more professionally next time."

"Anyway, what's your business here?" She continued, "And by the way, stop fooling around and tell me your _real_ name. You don't look even one bit like one of those idiots in this small country."

The man made a weird face and smiled at Evangeline sheepishly.

"Ehehe, I should have know that it won't work...you can call me Gale, even though I still think I should kept using the fake name." He answered cheerfully, brushing a few specks of dust off his travelling cloak. "Who would you be, if I may ask."

"Hn, whatever, it's not like I'm going to eat you if you spell your name out to the world" Evangeline sneered, then added darkly with a sinister chuckle. "I'm going to eat you either way."

Acting as if she didn't muttered something that could warrant her a nice cell in the police depot, she continued with a flick of her golden locks. "I'm the Dark Evangel. Evangeline A.K. McDowell." The child declared pridefully, turning away and walked back into her house. She stopped halfway through the hallway and whipped her head around. "And you can lay off the thought of reporting me to the cabbages in Mundus Magica, I've got something special that guarantees my stay here."

"Well...why would I do that? It's not like you're famous or something..."

Silence wheeled in without a sound as Evangeline gave her 'guest' an 'Are you dumb or something?' look. "Are you serious? You don't know who I am?"

Then, witnessing Gale's seemingly clueless look, she spun another one-eighty around and faced him again. "Well isn't that interesting." She said with a smirk, an idea forming in her head.

"Come in then, you'll need a quick update. Don't want to mess things up now do you?" She smiled wickedly and once again head back into the cottage. Chachamaru moved to a side and let them through, her sensors still analysing the new person, filing away what she had gathered during the small exchange between her master and the man. She might need them in the future, even though nothing were really worth anything.

Then, as she reached for the door her internal data managing software encountered a slight malfunction and began to create unknown, yet still decipherable strings of data, with a question mark appearing suspiciously after each string. In human terms, it would be best to describe that she was wondering. As her processor executes the data files, it intercepts one string and send a prioritized command to her vocal mechanism, and she found herself asking the content of that particular file. "Should I refer to you as Kazami-san or Gale-san?"

"Hmm...well, even though I've been busted, I still prefer my alias when I'm here, and I'm not too use to someone calling me by last name, so Kazehiro will do." He replied with a smile. "But just be prepared, I might change it later..."

* * *

The ringing sound of the bell signalled the end of another day of school for the students of Mahora Academy. People rushes out of the various buildings of the Academy ground as they hurried towards their various club activities.

Negi Springfield finished packing his teaching gear into his small briefcase and waved goodbye to the ghost of Aisaka Sayo, before closing shut the classroom door and departed.

'That was close.' He sighed tiredly, and a weary grimace found its way onto his face, 'How am I suppose to teach the class when I failed to be on time?'

Walking slowly towards the train station where he would took the train back to the dorm areas, he began to recall the day's events.

'Another argument between Asuna-san and Iincho-san; Asakura-san causing an uproar by revealing the relationship between Aizawa-san from 3-C of the boys sector and Minase-san from 3-D down the corridor; Izumi-san accidentally cut her finger and fainted; Master and Chachamaru-san not attending class…' He furrowed his eyebrows and stopped walking, 'Why aren't Master and Chachamaru-san in class today? Did something happened?'

Pondering his options for a moment, Negi turned around and started making his way towards the wooden cottage where the mage vampire lived.

* * *

"Wha?!" Dodging a magic arrow attack, Kazehiro yelped when he was confronted with another batch of ice magic, "What's the meaning of this?! Why are you attacking me?!"

"It's just a bit of fun." Came the sarcastic reply. Flying high in the air and ignoring the reply of 'It's not funny!', Evangeline was enjoying herself as she prepares another series of arrows, "You should be happy that I'm not going full force on you! _**Nongenti Nonaginta Septem Spīritūs Glaciālēs Coeuntēs Inimīcum Concidant! Sagitta Magica Seriēs Glaciālis!!**_"

Eyes widening at the huge number of approaching streams of ice magic, Kazehiro cried exasperatedly, "You call THAT not going full force?! That's like a thousand there!"

Evangeline merely shrugged as she watched the Arrows closing in towards the man.

"Whining won't save you, you know?"

With a resigned wail, Kazehiro started running around the large circular dome, dodging the homing-in magic left and right. For two whole minutes this process repeated itself over and over again. Yawning slightly, Evangeline continued to watch in boredom as the running man dodged past the hundred mark.

Tired out by the constant running, Kazehiro was panting heavily as he kept his pace at full speed. Then, with a sudden hitch, he tripped to the ground and started gasping quickly and frantically, his face wrecked with panic as he clutched his chest tightly. Curled up slightly as he lay on the ground wheezing, the magic arrows soon came into contact with the downed man, hitting him with full power. His yell was suppressed by his wheezing, and what managed to came out of him was consumed by the explosions of ice magic.

Lurching forward with surprise painted on her face as she looked at the scene unfolding in front of her, Evangeline quickly dismissed the remaining ice arrows with a wave of her hand. Landing next to the now battered; bloodied; unconscious man, she quickly examined his injuries.

'What the _hell_ just happened?!' was her only thought as she scrambled all over the man checking his conditions.

"Chachamaru! Get here, NOW!"

* * *

Confused and worried at the lack of responses, Negi knocked at the wooden door once again. Having done that for more that three times now, he was fearing that something might have happened to his mentor and her partner. Trying to reassure himself that nothing was wrong, he twisted the door knob and, to his surprise, the door swung freely inwards. Fearing what could be happening, Negi rushed into the cottage as he searched for his students.

"Master! Chachamaru-san! Answer me! Please!" He yelled while scuttling all over the small building in a frenzied state looking for the two female occupants. After searching through the whole house including shelves and drawers, Negi was at the verge of crying when he remembered one last place.

'The resort!'

Running hurriedly towards the large contraptions of spheres that made up the resort areas, he immediately transported himself into the centre stage.

When he appeared on the teleportation pad and took in his surroundings, he started to panic again as he looked at the destruction of the area.

"What happened here?" He whispered to himself as he fly through the ruins on his staff. Looking around searching for his mentor, he spotted her and Chachamaru over the resting area of the resort, the place seemingly unlinked to the chaotic scenery bellow him. Flying hastily towards the pair, he landed with a light thud as he looked at Evangeline's troubled face with confusion.

"Master! Chachamaru-san! Are you two hurt? What happened here?"

Chachamaru bowed before answering him with an emotionless tone. "A man who master expected had appeared and master challenged the man in a fight. The man tripped and took on the full blunt of the magic arrows attack which had destroyed sixty-three point two percent of the field of battle. He is currently unconscious and resting in the first aid room."

Negi's jaws dropped slightly at the answer he received, but quickly recovered as he looked warily at Chachamaru.

"Is he alright? Is he trying to harm you two?"

"Kazami-san is currently resting, I had ran a diagnostic on his body and detected that he had anaemia, which had an eighty-seven point nine percent chance as the cause of his current condition." She droned on, "He made no attempts to attack master and I had sensed no hostility in him."

"Then why did master fight him?" Negi asked, even more confused at the actions of his mentor.

"Because I wanted to test him." Evangeline answered the question as she made her way towards the pair, "Although I have to say I did not expect this to happen."

"Do you know him?"

"No, but I had sensed his magical aura within the school grounds before school starts, so I stayed in the house waiting for him to show himself."

Negi was horrified at her response, "Bu…but he might not have known about magic! How could you do this to him?"

"Oh stop whinging you little brat, he knows about magic, so there, happy now?" Evangeline waved casually, "I'm just curious about why he's here, the old fool's going to make me do it sooner or later so why not do it when he presented himself? I didn't expect this to happen."

Sighing tiredly, Negi looked at his two students. "Well...I will inform the dean about this...could you please take me to where he rests? I want to have a look at him."

Chachamaru bowed respectfully at his request and led the child teacher through the complex and into the first aid room. Evangeline followed them out of pure boredom.

Negi observed the man and took note of his features when they arrived; he turned towards his two companions.

"What's his name? I remembered Chachamaru-san calling him Kazami-san before."

"He had insisted to be called Kazami Kazehiro when he arrived at the front door." Chachamaru answered calmly as she began to recheck the vital signs of the unconscious individual.

"Kazami Kazehiro…san…" Negi mumbled out the name, trying to get familiarize with it. After a few more minutes of observing and remembering, Negi nodded to himself and looked at the unconscious Kazehiro. "Wonder why he's here."

* * *

Time flew as Negi, Evangeline and Chachamaru went on to their separate work. Choosing to use the time for the greater good his class, Negi had seated himself in front of a coffee table, marking tests and homework he received during the day, while planning the lesson plan for the next. Evangeline, who was bored from the lack of activities within the compound, chose instead to focus on making new catalysts as she concluded that it would help her keep her stock supplied, and pass the time quicker. Continuing her duty, Chachamaru worked diligently through the rubbles created during the chaos earlier on, cleaning up and repairing the place until the scars of battle disappeared from the past battleground.

His stomach protesting with a fierce growl, Negi sighed, and placed the rest of the paper onto a neat pile before standing up and walked over to the dinning table, where Evangeline was waiting with an impatient look etched onto her face. Chachamaru, who was standing behind the mage vampire, bowed once and began to prepare the meal.

"What are you trying to do? Starve your tutor?" Evangeline asked Negi sarcastically, before she looked at Negi slyly, a devious grin spreading across her child-like face, "Or are you preparing me a tastier meal?"

Eyes widening in surprise, Negi waved his hands frantically as he stuttered through his almost ineligible sentences of excuses and protests.

"M-Master! You're not…you can't…I mean…I was w-working, a-and I d-didn't realize how much t-time had passed! A-and it's unhealthy! And I'm tired! A-and…"

"Oh shut it." Evangeline snapped at him, "I was only joking, geez, can't you take things lightly? And that excuse sucks! Unhealthy? How many years have I lived by drinking blood, do I looked like I had a fever afterwards?" She exclaimed as she rolled her eyes in exasperation.

"Oh, um…uh…ehehehe…" Negi smiled nervously as he scratched the side of his head, unable to think of any responses. To his relief, Chachamaru had chosen that moment to serve up the dishes. "Oh wow! They looked nice Chachamaru-san!" He beamed at the android, who's facial motors accelerated and began to glow red and radiate heat. Looking away hurriedly, Chachamaru tried to slow the motor without much success.

"I-it's nothing…" Chachamaru mumbled shyly as she moved her gaze back at Negi with concern, who had began to consume his meal.

Swallowing the food, Negi smiled brightly at Chachamaru. "It tastes great too! You're a really good cook Chachamaru-san!"

Chachamaru, who had found her facial motors racing into overdrive and glowing even more brightly, only gave her teacher a meek nod as she quickly returned to the kitchen, hoping to hide her increasing redness from him.

Dinner continued peacefully as the trio quietly finished their food, and to Negi's horror and tearful whimpering, Evangeline's 'special' dessert. Namely, a particular child prodigy's crimson fluid.

After cleaning the dishes and tables, the three decided to call it a day as they made their way towards their separate bedrooms, with Negi's being one of the guest rooms, Evangeline's being the master bedroom and Chachamaru simply standing next to the bed, hibernating her systems.

* * *

The night passed on silently, the occupants within the resort slumbering quietly. Nothing moved, until a pair of deep blue eyes blinked, marking the awakening of one of the lodgers within the compound.

Slowly adjusting to the darkness of the room, Kazehiro gradually sat up. Looking around for a moment, he laid back down onto the bed softly as he processed through the events earlier. Then, closing his eyes as he sighed tiredly, he lifted the covers and got off the bed, before drawing a magic circle on the ground.

Standing directly above the magic circle, he began to chant.

"_**Flows of the freedom of nature, spirits of the unyielding wind, lend me your aid and provide me guidance in this land of exile. Primary contract, bind.**_"

Silence reigned, for a few seconds nothing happened, then, slowly, the air around the man shifted. The shifts became more active as time passed, the howls of wind rung throughout the area, random objects swayed with the force, the air spiralling around the man, who stood like a statue, unmoving as he focussed fully at the task at hand. The wind began to slow down as they started to enter Kazehiro's body, slowly fuelling him and completing the pact.

More time passed, and the wind had seized. Kazehiro plopped down hard onto the bed, breathing deeply and sweating a little as he tried to recover from the exhaustion. Pulling himself back onto the bed, he began to drift off.

Many things will have to be explained tomorrow.

And he needed as much energy he could muster to pull himself through the day.

* * *

Translations and Definitions:  
_**Nongenti Nonaginta Septem Spīritūs Glaciālēs Coeuntēs Inimīcum Concidant! Sagitta Magica Seriēs Glaciālis!! - **_997 Spirits of ice, gather and rip my foe to pieces, Magic Arrows, Array of Ice!! - Quite obviously, a type of Magic Arrow spell. Evangeline was able to summon the amount due to the little energy requirements with the spell and her being at full power within the resorts.

_**Flows of the freedom of nature, spirits of the unyielding wind, lend me your aid and provide me guidance in this land of exile. Primary contract, bind.**_ - A self-created spell used by the protagonist to form a pact with the elemental spirits of the air.

_I admit this is not the best of the best, but hopefully it is up to the standards. Reviews and constructive criticism are welcomed._

_Again, sorry for the long time between chapters, hopefully the next one would require less time to complete._


	3. Meetings and Greetings

_**The Whispering Innocence**_

_A Mahou Sensei Negima (Magister Negi Magi) Fanfiction_

_By GaleBread_

_I do not own Mahou Sensei Negima (Though I wish I do). This is a work of Fanfiction and the materials are used without permission. All characters and settings of Mahou Sensei Negima are the property of Ken Akamatsu; no profits are made from this fictional work. Gale (His current Alias being Kazami Kazehiro) belongs to GaleBread._

AN: Okay, so I really don't have an excuse for this…or maybe I do, I could say I'm waiting for a New Year release! Yes, that will be my defence. Oh and I've changed the ending for Chapter 2, I never liked it, felt it's a bit rushed, so I've modified it to the state it is now. Hopefully everyone still remembers this…enjoy!

And before I forget again, I'm looking for a proof-reader, so if anyone's interested they are welcomed to send me a PM about it.

* * *

**Chapter 3: Meetings and Greetings**

Serenity, the only word fitting to describe the artificial morning of the resort.

Serenity, one of the many things that never stay for long.

Negi rubbed his eyes as he slowly sat up, yawning slightly, then groggily made his way towards the bathroom. He had went to sleep at a late hour by normal standards, yet outside of the seemingly paradise only one hour had passed. He unintentionally sighed. He was sure he'll be having trouble sleeping tonight.

Turning on the tap he began to clean himself, brushing his teeth with his right hand and drying his hair with his left with a towel after a quick dip under tap water. This had became a habit, forced onto him by the ever so energetic and brash Asuna, who mercilessly dragged him across the dormitories into the baths everyday until he began to do so himself. Negi chuckled slightly at the memories, they seemed such a long time ago. He often wondered what life he would lead if he never came to Mahora. Still, he avoided the baths whenever he can. He still hates them.

Banishing his thoughts as he turned the tap off, he dropped the towel into a basket and donned his small pony-tail. Picking up his glasses he placed them perfectly onto the bridge of his nose. Deciding that he was sufficiently readied for the day, he walked out of the bathroom, walked out of his room…

And into a frozen world…figuratively.

The atmosphere around the tables was, to put it lightly, unfriendly. Evangeline was glaring icy daggers at the new boy that arrived yesterday, who only smiled back at her, seemingly unaware of the fury of the Dark Evangel. This only served to infuriate the mage vampire even more as she began to twitch.

"So, are you going to answer my question? Or are you going to stay like a bloody statue?" She spat, somehow managed to contain her anger.

Kazehiro decided not to drop his smile.

"No."

Whether that answers the first question or the one after it, or even the question he didn't hear, Negi couldn't tell, though he suspect that it answers all of them at the same time.

Nevertheless, it served its purpose.

"That's it! DIE!!" Evangeline yelled as she lunged at the boy, baring her canines.

The boy stood his ground, his seemingly perpetual smile continued to silently mock the vampire as the Undying Mage leapt at him.

Time seemed to have slowed down in Negi's eyes, as he saw Evangeline dived for the boy with her fangs, then hit something face first in the mid-air and bounced off to a side.

"Ow! What the hell was that!?" Evangeline shouted as she massaged her slightly reddened nose, while Negi decided to voice his opinion on the matter.

"Um…maybe an invisible shield?" The child teacher offered his help hesitantly. Evangeline only sent him a glare of cold fury.

"I know that! I want to know where the hell it came from you moron!"

Negi flinched and whimpered a little at Eva's aggressive attitude, he was beginning to rethink his decision of answering questions not directed to him. They only cause him more trouble, and he had enough to deal with with his class alone.

After a few more minutes of rubbing, Evangeline stood back up and marched towards the smiling man with the intention to kill. Just as she close in to within about a metre to execute her…execution, she was once again stoped by the invisible wall. Gritting her teeth furiously Evangeline channelled her mana and formed the Executioner Sword on her right hand, then stab it forward and came into contact with the barrier. Sparks flied; the blinding light caused Negi to lift his arms, trying to shadow his eyes from the radiating brightness.

Growling with irritation, Evangeline increased the power of the attack. The barrier wobbled, and Kazehiro frowned slightly as he quickly left his seat and dodged aside, barely missing the energy blade as it pierced through the barrier he created and zoomed straight at his previous location, sizzling the wooden chair to ashes the moment they touched. The man whistled at the display, before finding the blade next to his neck.

"Ah, this doesn't look well does it?" He asked with a casual smile, seemingly unfazed by the fact that he is an inch away from the welcoming arms of the palace of all white and fluffiness, or the train station where chaos is but a normal phenomenon, not unlike a certain girls-only dormitory ran by a nineteen years old male who had failed university entrance three times.

He wondered why he thought of these things, but mentally shrugged them off.

"Nothing will ever look well for you."

"Hmm, aggressive."

"Oh, I can be more violent if you want."

Kazehiro pondered for a moment, before shrugging physically and grinning at the mage vampire, who had a triumphant look on her face.

"Then I must refuse, I'm not into paedophilia."

The comment earned first a blink from the Dark Evangel, then a slightly flushed face and twitching brows, and finally a hand around the man's neck as Evangeline pinned said man to a wall and started choking him, her body emitting an even more impressive glow of doom than before.

"How dare you…how _dare_ you mock me! The Dark Evangel, the Undying Mage, the most feared dark mage of all times!" Evangeline growled, her hand tightening around the man's neck, who was, for some reason, still smiling as usual. "Why are you still smiling?! I'll have you know what it meant to cross the Puppet Master!"

"Sadly, I failed to see how you could resemble a large body of liquid for me to cross, Miss Puppet Master."

"Why you…!"

And so it continued as time slipped by and the two finally ended their little puppet show with only a sizzled chair and a slightly twitching girl who is way older than she looks. Throughout the whole drama that took place inside the no longer serene resort, Negi Springfield could only look-on in horror for most of the time, while inserting small slips of comments here and there. Most of those comments were reciprocated with a less than gentle reply and after awhile the child prodigy had finally heeded to his former rethinking and learned his lesson. He turned his attention away from the somewhat interesting banter between his mentor and the stranger towards the female android who had stood silent throughout the friendly chat. Asking politely for some breakfast like a true English gentleman the ten years old teacher sat down peacefully in front of the table and began to consume his meal, ignoring the noises behind him.

Chachamaru, after serving her not-really-a-secret crush, resumed her position and continue to watch the exchange of words between her master and the strange guest, secretly recording the whole show for a later analysis.

In the process of doing so, she accidentally erased the data of the wrecked guest room, thus, to the culprit's relieve, never asked about it.

* * *

With in the large Headmaster's office, dean Konoe Konoemon sat comfortably on his chair as he waited for the arrival of class 3-A's homeroom teacher. He had received news of the new appearance, and had asked for them to meet him. He had a bad feeling about the new person, but he can't place it for reasons unknown.

As he continued to ponder on it, a light knock from the doors brought him back from his thoughts. Gathering himself with a stroke of his long beard he waited as the doors creaked opened slowly, revealing his guests. He smiled as the child teacher walked in, but it soon became unnatural, seemingly forced when the next person stepped into the confines of his rather spacious office.

He eyed the newcomer with a brutally calm expression, leaking no information to his thoughts as he continued to observe the man that now stands before him.

"Welcome to Mahora." The old headmaster greeted, the same chilling calmness resonating within the large room.

* * *

_Right, so I had a change of heart and decided that there shall be no more OOC headmaster. It sent me into a dead end, so I changed it to a more probable scenario. It fits him better too, in my opinion…anyway, 'Girl-that-snacks' will still come at a later date, so for now, enjoy. :)_

_Comments and criticisms are welcomed, and once again I ask for anyone interested in proof reading my chapters. Thanks for enduring my slow and small updates, I hope I can improve my work over the coming months and create even better chapters and stories. Once again, thank you for reading this._


	4. Another World

_**The Whispering Innocence**_

_A Mahou Sensei Negima (Magister Negi Magi) Fanfiction_

_By GaleBread_

_I do not own Mahou Sensei Negima (Though I wish I do). This is a work of Fanfiction and the materials are used without permission. All characters and settings of Mahou Sensei Negima are the property of Ken Akamatsu; no profits are made from this fictional work. Alarich von Creuzfeldt belongs to GaleBread._

AN: Okay, so I've finally given up with the OOC headmaster idea and reworked that ending a bit. The big thing haven't started just yet, so a slight change of scenario didn't made a huge impact with the whole thing, other than kicking the writers-block aside and hopefully distract them for a little while longer with the forfeited ending for me to be able to write a bit more. Also I've revised the earlier chapters a bit, particularly chapter 2 which I'm not satisfied with from the start. It should now make more sense, and hopefully more fluent.

**This chapter was proofread by Daughter of Ether. Thanks DoE!**

* * *

**Chapter 4: Another World**

"That was definitely an interesting experience. Though he wasn't that friendly as you've described him to be…but at least he didn't randomly accuse me of something absurd, and seems to have warmed up a bit after awhile."

"Hmm, it does sound unusual, but I think the headmaster was just being cautious, after all, you are somewhat an unknown quantity."

"Ah…well…I suppose that's true, though why did you retreat when the dean and I had our…discussion?"

Negi looked up and blinked, he had thought the man would've realised by now, "But I couldn't very well have stayed, it is not done for one gentleman to impinge upon the private affairs of another!"

Kazehiro returned Negi's gaze with an eyebrow raised then, after a few silent moment of staring, he shrugged the reply off nonchalantly.

"Right, whatever. I don't really get it, but you do what you want."

Silence settled in as they continued their trek away from the office building that that daily witnessed deliberations upon the many important decisions of the academy. Today it had once again been a place where important matters are discussed and resolved. It was not what would be considered a 'heated debate' by normal standards, but it had its own moments of glory when one party had to rummage through their source of intelligence to counter a question or statement. By the end, decisions were made, and the headmaster had released his 'prisoners' from his room as he enjoyed yet another victory.

"I still don't get it though," The silence was broken by the questioning voice of the taller male. "Why would he give me a job when I didn't ask for one?"

"Well…" Negi started scratching the back of his head in embarrassment, he had briefly thought about the new low his class had achieved, and wondered if it was the reason. However, he quickly dismissed it in favour of another viable explanation. "The school _is_ having a slight problem with staff numbers. I'd imagine that since most reserves had been assigned a permanent position of their own, the need for substitute teachers has risen. And since not too many people were taking that offer up lately…"

Kazehiro sighed. How could he have missed it? The dean did mentioned briefly about the numbers of teachers globally were dropping by the year, so he should've at least guessed that this was the reason he was given a job. There could be a lot of reasons for such event to occur too, but as the headmaster had pointed out, the whole world was suffering from an aging population.

To the newly appointed 'general-substitute-teacher', that was a sufficient enough answer.

"Okay, I get it, there's no point debating about it now anyway, since I've already said yes. Still, it's good to know that some other staff here know about magic, that makes it much less dangerous to use it in the open, even if it's still very dangerous and should be avoided at all costs." He paused, and muttered. "I think."

The two rounded the corner to the central plaza as they continued to converse with each other, becoming familiar with the person next to them. There will probably be time when Kazehiro is to substitute for Negi, he imagined that it would help to have at least a passing familiarity with all of the teachers he may have to fill in for. Aside from gaining an idea of their teaching style it also makes understanding the key points of the lessons that he might be teaching much easier to anticipate.

Additionally, they had nothing better to do for the day, and Negi had adamantly refused to return to the room he shared with Asuna and Konoka, muttering something that sounded suspiciously alike the line of 'dragged to the evil bath against his own will' or the numerous variants of said sentence.

"So where would you be staying, Kazami-san?"

"Ah, that was one of the more pressing issues I've discussed with the dean. I had told him that I'm going to be living with my wife, and after settling down a few terms and the like he had agreed to that idea. We're practically next to the campus anyway, so the whole transport problem went right out of the way, which made the remaining matters very easy to sort out."

"Oh, I see. That was a relief, the dormitory rooms were getting really crowded, and I feared that you might not have a place to stay." Negi had visibly loosened up, and let out the breath he had held subconsciously a few moments ago, as if a burden had suddenly been lifted off him. Then a question considered to be a normal one in these situations popped into his head, and he was more than willing to ask said question, being that he always liked a little extra knowledge. "Where is it though? I would like to visit you some time in the future."

With a grin that fits more on the faces of the dynamic twin pranksters Fuuka and Fumika etched on his face, Kazehiro replied with a vague 'You'll see' and moved away from the topic, he had then avoided Negi's further attempts to pry information from him permanently by threatening to reveal magic to the world. He was only joking, of course, but Negi would rather not take the risk, and had since not inquired into the matter. He knew he would soon find out what Kazehiro meant, so his curiosity was pushed to the back of his mind.

* * *

They made a detour towards a nearby flower shop at Kazehiro's insistence, who said that his wife loved flowers and he wants to give her a present.

A flicker.

A flicker of shadows.

An animate object amidst inanimate night.

There will only be one thing that glitters.

The time will soon be upon us.

Let us be prepared to feast.

* * *

"So this is where you live? Quaint."

"Um…Kazami-san…"

"You say you live with two other girls huh? Didn't know kids these days were that mature, I wouldn't even know what those things were back when I'm a kid, I guess birds and bees stopped working after all these centuries…"

"Kazami-san…?"

"Oh! And you have a squirrel! Is this a rare breed or something? I've never seen a white one."

There was a distinct sound of a cord snapping a millisecond later that could wake the whole school, but strangely, and to a degree, fortunately, no one other than a special child mage could hear that sound. Said child mage had just flinched subconsciously, but then wondered what was that he was afraid of.

A moment of silence had passed, and nothing moved. The birds had stopped singing, the trees had stopped swaying, the wind had stopped flowing, and the stomach of a hungry child had stopped growling. Everything ceased to move, waiting for that particular inevitable moment.

A few more tense seconds had passed…

And from the mouth of one white _ermine _came the long waited explosion…

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING SQUIRREL YOU BRAT! I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW THAT I'M AN ERMINE, AN _ERMINE_! NOT A DAMNED NUT CRACKER!"

"Whoa! It talks?!"

Miracles had once again proven their existence, as Albert Chamomile had somehow achieved the impossible task of blanching even whiter than his already snow white fur colour. He performed an impressive imitation of a stone statue, and hurriedly begun to purr in the most ermine-like sound he could muster, which isn't that spectacular, given that he coughed a few times throughout and took a drag of his cigarette midway through the purring feat.

Negi let out a soft chuckle and shook his head with a smile.

"Don't worry Chamo-kun, Kazami-san knew about magic."

Immediately ceasing his less than convincing act, Chamo puffed out another smoke ring and jumped onto Negi's shoulders.

"Why didn't you tell me earlier Aniki? That would've saved so much trouble! My throat is hurting now…" He rubbed where his throat might be with his paws to strengthen the point, which made Negi chuckle again, though nervously this time.

"Sorry Chamo-kun, but I thought you might know him from the net…"

After a quick once-over at the grinning man, Chamo shook his head and lit up another cigarette.

"Nope, never seen him before, who's your friend? And where did he come from?"

As silence encompassed the room, Kazehiro found two pairs of eyes…correction, four pairs of eyes staring at him, as he finally located the girls Negi was living with. Clearing his throat and once again grinning, he mock saluted at the new arrivals. "Welcome! I assume you two are the ones living with Negi here?"

Konoka, being the dean's granddaughter and thus already heard of the news of the new general substitute teacher, recovered first as she entered the room carrying a bag of vegetables and fruits. Smiling kindly as she did so, she placed the food in the kitchen and quickly walked back out into the living room, where the others gathered. Asuna watched the scene silently, and sent a questioning look toward Negi, who noticed and gestured her to come closer to the group.

As they gathered around the table and made themselves comfortable, Kazehiro began introducing himself to the two girls and the familiar on Negi's shoulder.

"Good evening, I am the new back up teacher the dean just hired recently. My name's Kazami…oh yeah, sorry, kind of forgot about it, but I'm now Alarich von Creuzfeldt, since the McDowell girl and the dean both told me that I don't look Japanese…anyway, I'll either be substituting unavailable teachers during the day, or helping the other faculty members that don't have classes at the time. I am twenty, and was married." He paused and nodded slightly, then continued after a few moments of options weighting. "I am aware of the existence of magic, and am a mage myself. Not the traditional mage in this…well, world, but still qualifies as one."

The others looked at him oddly, and after a period of silence Asuna decided to raise one question that boggles her mind.

"So you come from the…uh…what's it called again? 'Mundis Mageba'?"

"Um, Asuna-san, it is 'Mundus Magica', meaning world of magic." Negi chipped in, then quickly looked away and ahead at the disapproving stare of his not particularly chastened student.

"Well whatever, so why are you here?" asked Asuna, eyeing the man suspiciously. He just popped out of no where, and even with the dean approving his new status as a substitute, she had her doubts.

"I enjoy history." Answered Kaz…Alarich, as he brought out a thick book from his travelling bag and placed it on the table. The cover was made of old leather, bleached with age and worn out, and the pages were slightly crumpled and yellowing. Even Asuna could tell that it had weathered through many things. Alarich smiled and flipped over a few pages with care. "Particularly the recording of it. It was a dream of mine to record everything the world has to offer, and I have to be here, in this world, to do so. This academy looked like a good place to start too, since there is a huge library here that takes up a whole island."

He beamed at the others as he closed the book carefully and put it away. "Of course, originally, I was just going to be a guest and leave after I've finished my work here, but since the dean had so graciously offered me a chance of earning a stable pay, I suppose I'll be staying longer than intended."

"Anyway," Alarich picked up his bag and looked around. "Do any of you know where I could find a large mirror?"

Negi looked at him uncertainly, but pointed towards the bathrooms nonetheless. He still didn't really know Alarich, and the sudden name change confuses him, but if the headmaster trusts the man and thought it was fine, then he wouldn't question about it. "Um…there is one in the bathroom, but other than that, I'm not sure…"

Making a weird face and following Negi's guidance, Alarich contemplated for awhile before allowing his shoulders to sag and sighing dejectedly. "Ah well…it'll do…" He muttered under his breath as he heaved his bag on his back and made his way to the bathroom. The others followed him out of curiosity, and stood outside the doorway as Alarich took out four silvery contraptions that had a gem of different colours embedded into them. He set the contraptions at each corner of the mirror and tapped them lightly, each tap generating a shimmering string from the gems that was linked to his finger. Guiding the strings to the centre of the mirror, Alarich pressed his finger down on said mirror and a magic circle immediately sprung forth. Negi and co. watched in confusion as he began to chant in an unknown language. The child teacher subconsciously reached for his staff.

"_**Sihtic, Gucsuc, Jantah, Cagye, Funimt. Knyhd sa byccyka yht ihmulg dra kydac. Mad drnuikr yht mayt, kieta sa dufyntc so tacdehydeuh. Tuun du dra Funmtc.**_"

As the chant finished, the mirror visibly rippled. Then, a strong pulse was emitted, and at the centre of the magic circle something similar to a black hole ripped through and expended in a circular fashion. Alarich pushed his hand forward, through the hole, and pulled at an imaginary object. The hole rippled like the mirror had before it, and colour exploded into existence. Negi watched in fascination as scenery of a gentle knoll, covered in lush green grasses and grand oak trees that guided a small, curvy dirt path came into view. At the end of the path, seen through the gap between trees, stood a simple wooden hut, with a rectangular wooden table and a few chairs seating in front of the door. Alarich turned around and grinned at the other three and one familiar.

"Welcome to my home."

* * *

_Once again, sorry for the long wait, but I presume that all of you who still remembered this story should be used to my irregularly long period between updates. Hopefully this is a good enough chapter that will sate the non-existent hunger of everyone. Thank you for all the reviews, they meant a lot to me. I promise I'll finish this no matter what, and maybe when I'm better at writing I'll return and improve this story. See you all again soon:)_


	5. Beginning

_**The Whispering Innocence**_

_A Mahou Sensei Negima (Magister Negi Magi) Fanfiction_

_By GaleBread_

_I do not own Mahou Sensei Negima. This is a work of Fanfiction and the materials are used without permission. All characters and settings of Mahou Sensei Negima are properties of Ken Akamatsu; no profits are made from this fictional work. Alarich von Creuzfeldt (The name's staying this time…) belongs to GaleBread._

AN: Another late one. Mid-year exams _are_ coming up though, so I had to spend more time studying than writing. Still, here's the fifth chapter of _The Whispering Innocence_. Hopefully I can really pick up the speed after the exams.

Oh, and hurray for breaking the ten thousand word mark!

**This chapter was proofread by Daughter of Ether. Thanks!**

* * *

**Chapter 5: Beginning**

"Welcome to my home." Alarich said, then suppressed a yawn. "Well, anyway, it's kind of late right now, so I suggest we all get some sleep and be readied for the next day. At least that's what I'll be doing, so good night."

Then, as if that was all that needs explaining, Alarich climbed through the portal without another word and stood up, brushing the dusts off of him. He turned around and waved at the others, and began to walk away towards the hut.

"W-wait up Creuzfeldt-san!" Coming out of his stupor, Negi tentatively touched the surface of the portal, which rippled the moment his finger came into contact before letting it through without much resistance. Encouraged, he too climbed through the portal and caught up to the boy with ease. "Creuzfeldt-san, what did you do? I don't remember reading anything about a small scale teleportation spell that allows inter-world travel." Asked the English teacher, who looked at Alarich with curiosity. The other boy gave Negi a tired smile as he looked back.

"Sorry kid, I'm a bit too tired right now to explain everything. Think you could ask tomorrow?"

Negi looked at the boy for a few more seconds, then nodded with a small sigh. "Very well then, but at least tell me how to close it temporarily in case my other students came in."

"Just remove one of the gems, doesn't matter which other than the blue one, and the thing will close and you get your mirror back. Set it back onto the mirror and it'll activate again. They're just there to cut down the spell chant and maintain the energy cycle, the blue one though is what keeps the whole thing together, so pull that one out and it'll be close literally." Alarich answered with another yawn.

Taking in the information, Negi bid the other boy goodbye and left for the portal, but looked back at the last second as he heard a call from behind.

He barely managed to catch the book flying his way. It looked like a normal notebook, but at a closer view there are tiny gems embedded into the corners of the pages.

"When it flips itself, that means I want you to reactivate the portal and let me through. And just write in it if you want to speak to me while I'm on this side, night kid."

The sound of door shutting came soon afterwards, and Negi headed back into his room, taking the emerald gemstone off the sides of the mirror as he passed through. The portal shimmered and shuddered once, then collapsed and disappeared without a trace. Double checking it and certain that it won't suddenly open up again, the child teacher got out of the bathroom, closed the door, and headed for a much needed sleep.

* * *

The wind shifts.

Under the dim lamp lights of the streets of Mahora, a female with long flowing silvery hair and garbed in a white turtleneck and midnight-blue skirt wandered, seemingly without a destination.

Behind her, another person followed lightly, an unnatural smile surfacing.

"The last piece…I can smell it…it's…almost readied. Very soon…very soon the last sacrifice will be done, and the ritual will be completed. Then…then they will experience extreme distress…they will see death, they will drown in the blood of their brethren and of their own bodies for days, weeks and years…and baptized be in tragedy, pain and idleness till all taste for woes are lost, till numbness rendered to all humane emotions and agitation. Then…then they are ready, and whole in mind and spirit. Then…what they lose…I shall embrace…"

The female slowed and wavered; a small glint passed through her eyes, but was gone without a trace in an instant. She said nothing and continued her wandering, as if the monologue of the person behind her doesn't concern her.

Within her bruised mind, the last vestige of her sanity shivered and started chuckling in despair.

There won't be salvation.

Not for those who've perished.

Not for those who're consumed.

Not for those who still live.

Not for her, when she had nothing left to be saved.

There won't be salvation…

There won't be salvation…

There won't be…

There won't…

…

The wind shifts again.

A taste of iron wafted through, mingling with the breeze.

A trickle of crimson slowly spread through the gaps between cobblestones.

* * *

A flickering sound broke the silence of the room.

Awoke by the sound, Negi rubbed his eyes habitually and yawned, getting off of Asuna's bed, which he had somehow managed to crawl into in mid-sleep again, and landed onto the wooden floorboard. He glanced towards the clock on one of the desks, which glared back with the display of 'oh-five-three-oh'. Next to the cloak lies the notebook he received from Alarich last night, and it was doing what he was told would happen.

Walking up to the desk and taking the green gem to the bathroom, Negi placed it onto the mirror and the portal shimmered back into life. On the other side was a grinning Alarich wearing a formal suit.

"Good evening, or more likely morning at your side Negi, I hope it wasn't too early." The boy in the suit greeted, a fiery sky behind him indicating the difference of time.

Negi had half a mind to say 'Yes it's too early.' And pull the gem off again so he can get back to sleep, but refrained from doing so. It is simply not an acceptable course of action for a gentleman.

Instead, he returned the greeting with a smile. "Good morning Creuzfeldt-san, it's not a problem." He then looked at Alarich's wardrobe with interest. "What's the occasion today?"

The other boy smiled sheepishly. "Well, I was thinking that since this would be my first official day at work I might as well dress a bit better. Is this suit weird?"

Shaking his head, Negi stepped aside and let the boy through. "No, this is fine Creuzfeldt-san. I believe you'll do just fine today."

"Ah good, I was having doubts there a few minutes ago. Thanks for the ego boost by the way."

Nodding at Negi with a conspiratorial wink and a smirk, Alarich took the gems away and watched the portal died down before slipping out of the room with little sound. He poke his head back in before he closed the door. "Oh, and where's the redhead? Couldn't see her anywhere here."

"Asuna-san's out in the morning to deliver the papers, she'll be back in awhile." Came the answer as Negi walked out of the bathroom.

"Oh okay, have a nice day kid." And he was gone, closing the door lightly as he goes.

Chuckling slightly, Negi went back into the bathroom to wash up. When he came back out, the room was lit and on the table laid three dishes of scrambled eggs and toasts. Trading greetings with the heir of the Konoe family as she came out of the kitchen and into the bathroom, Negi waited patiently for her to finish the morning wash.

As Konoka walked back out, so did Asuna returned in her sports gear. She dropped her paper bag and sat down beside the table, nodding at Negi before taking in her breakfast. The others soon followed and soon after they concluded the meal and changed for the day, they set out towards the main campus.

The three of them arrived just in time as the bell rang and the day officially started. The girls went straight into the classroom and seated, while Negi went to the staffroom and put down his things. It was there that he met Takahata, who told him to meet with the headmaster in the headmaster's office.

"It's best not to say anything here, the dean will inform you of the matter himself. I'll find the new boy to substitute for you since I had my own class, so go quickly. It's urgent." Takahata said as he opened the door to the corridor, a rare grimness appearing for a moment before disappearing completely. Negi nodded and hastily made his way to the dean's office after putting down his bag and staff.

* * *

"Well what do you know? The first assignment and I managed to end up subbing the kid's class. Having fun there Miss Fate?" Alarich asked while standing before Class 3-A's door and staring up at the ceilings with amusement. "Ah well, might as well make the best out of it, at least I knew a few of them."

Shrugging after his little monologue and with a final adjustment of his tie, he opened the door and blinked as thirty pairs of eyes stared at him at the same time. Scanning the room with a slow rolling of his eyes, he stepped in and closed the door behind him. Walking up to the teacher's desk, he picked a chalk and wrote his name onto the board behind him, then turned back and grinned rakishly. "Good morning everyone, my name's Alarich von Creuzfeldt as written on the board. You can call me Alarich-sensei, Creuzfeldt-sensei, Mr. Creuzfeldt or just plain Alarich, any one of them is fine with me. I'll be your substitute for this period due to Negi-sensei being summoned by the headmaster this morning. Since it's a bit sudden, I haven't been told of the schedule of the class, so you all may proceed with private studying." He paused and took a breather. "And if anyone has any questions, ask them. There is no such thing as a useless question, and the worse ones are the ones not asked. So go ahead, ask if you need help, I'll try my best to answer your questions."

There was a moment of silence as he stood behind the desk, the rhythmic cricket of cicadas resonating through the windows.

"Holy shit it's another young one!"

"My~"

"Get him!"

"W-wait a minute! What are you do-HEY! Don't touch that!"

And, as per usual, all hell breaks loose.

* * *

"That'll be the last time I'm going near a five metre radius of that room when those girls are in there, they're all nuts!" Alarich huffed as he dragged himself back to the, surprisingly empty, teacher's lounge, the tidiness of his attire no longer present. His suit was torn in a few places, and his hair whitened by the dust from the duster, and worst of all, his coat is now pink. Discarding his equipments on his temporary table without much care, he dusted himself off and took the coat off, dumping it on his chair and trying to straighten his tie. Suffice to say, it had been a very rough first day for him. "Who is it that had the bright idea of putting those bunch of people together anyway?! He should be fried and boiled just for suggesting it!"

"Having a bad day?"

Spinning around towards the source of the voice, the young teacher found another person in the room. 'Wait a minute, I was sure this place is empty.'

"Barry's my name, I'm the janitor here." The man simply said, answering one of the unasked question. "Troubles in class?"

"Eh? Oh yes, I guess." Sighing deeply, the substitute shook his head in defeat. "You wouldn't be able to imagine how similar those girls are to devils."

"Is that so?" The janitor inquired, though never taking his focus away from his cleaning. "They don't seem to be as bad as you describe them to be."

"Looks are decieving, old man. You wouldn't understand." The boy stated, sitting with a slump on his table.

"I find your lack of faith rather disturbing."

Giving Barry the janitor a confused glance, Alarich shrugged indifferently. "You know, you're a weird guy."

"Your word wounds me, young man." The man replied with a slightly thearetical voice. "You just need to know them better."

"Sure, whatever you say..." Heaving in another sigh, the younger male fixed his hair and walked out of the lounge. There he stood in the corridors, thinking.

"Huh, weird guy. Well whatever, now what? Everyone's gone for some reason, and Negi doesn't look like he's back from the meeting yet…" He muttered under his breath, his hand clasped onto his face and the index finger tapping subconsciously as he continued to ponder on his options. "Well, the second period's starting about now, so I can't expect anyone to really come back here. The plaza's probably empty and a bit too far right now. Playing a bit of sport sounds like a good idea, but there might be a class going on in the gym. Going downtown's out of the question too, as the trains don't stop at this station at this time…"

His finger continued to tap for a few more times, then his hand dropped back down to his sides as he sighed and scratched the side of his face with the other hand.

"I guess I'll just go and wait for the kid…"

Nodding once and finalising his decision, he set out towards the headmaster's office, humming a small tune as he tread through the crisscrossing corridors or the building. It took him more than a few minutes to get to his destination as he almost lost himself twice on the way, but was lucky enough that he noticed his mistake soon each time he deviated from the correct route. Dusting himself again in paranoia, he straightened his shirt and stopped in front of the double-door of the dean's office.

He was just beginning to walk to and lean on the sidewalls when snippets of conversation happening in the room caught his attention. He absently remarked about bad sound control as his curiosity caused him to hold his ear near the door to listen to the discussion happening inside the room. He had missed most of what the headmaster was saying just before, but those afterwards are heard quite clearly, even though the exchange ended soon after.

_-So now you know.-_ The dean said in, Alarich raised an eyebrow, a grave and tired tone. -_It's been dealt with for now, so don't worry about that, but as I've said, you had your responsibilities. Do you know what to do?-_

_-Yes, it is my responsibility; I'll be on the look out.- _Came the wearied answer from Negi.

_-Remember, this is serious matter, be careful.-_

_-Yes sir, I will.-_

Then the sound of chair moving followed, and Alarich retreated from his position, leaning against the wall as if nothing had happened. He knew he shouldn't be listening in on the conversation, but banished the guilt trip his conscious was putting him through as Negi emerged from within the room, a grave yet determined look on his face. Then it transformed first into a look of shock when he noticed Alarich leaning on the wall next to the doors, then relieve and a small smile appeared. It was faked, anyone could see it clearly.

'_Hmm…something big is definitely happening…'_ thought the older boy as he pushed himself away from the wall, walking up to the younger teacher and gave the child a friendly pat on the back. "Yo, that's one long meeting to be going on for a whole period." He said cheerfully.

The smile on Negi's face faltered slightly for a split second as the boy remembered the meeting just then, but he recovered and nodded, answering politely. "Yes it is."

* * *

Aisaka Sayo, seat number one of 3-A and the resident ghost entity slowly drifted through the deserted corridors while spinning a pen expertly with one hand. The school day had officially ended just a bit more than ten minutes ago, and everyone's either already left or were near the entrance, leaving her alone to roam around the building and the school ground she had stayed in for more than sixty years. She had gotten used to this style of living, or in her case un-living, where she would be left alone for the whole night, never to sleep or have anything to do to distract her from the excessive amount of boredom. She had done most things she could do as a ghost, and had already mastered the skill of spinning a pen with fingers, so there is little left for her to do to push the boredom away. It's a miracle she hadn't been bored to insanity yet, though it will most definitely be contributed to the lively classmates she had throughout her long existent, even if none of them could see her until this year. It had been an interesting experience back then, and she's glad to be able to be seen by others, even more so when they became friends with her. Still, that's only during the day. The time after school was always the same.

So it was a slight surprise to her to find someone other than the occasional cleaners in the building.

That person was inside one of the classrooms, rubbing off chalk marks off the board with a duster and generally packing things up. Upon closer inspection, she found that he was the substitute teacher she had in the morning.

She remembered that he could actually see her without anyone's help, so could he be just like Negi and knew about magic?

Gliding down to the boy, she stopped right in front of the desk he was tidying, the pen she was spinning awhile ago placed neatly on one corner. The boy stopped his cleaning and looked up, and ruby orbs met emerald ones.

"Hello." Sayo greeted, tilting her head slightly with a smile. "You can see me, can you?"

The boy said nothing, then looked away for a brief second and back, nodding once in confirmation. There was a look of confusion in his eyes. "Um…you are…?"

With a slight look of hurt, Sayo sighed lightly. It _was_ quite an uproar in the morning, so he probably didn't have time to remember names. It didn't make her feel any better though.

"Seat number one, Aisaka Sayo of 3-A. Sorry about the chaos in the morning, it happens every time they meet someone new." She answered with an apologetic tone. "Don't judge them too hard though, they're a very nice group of people."

The boy stayed quiet again, looking thoughtful as he stared ahead, eyes somewhat defocused. Then his thoughts were pulled back, and he nodded again, his face softening a bit. "Nice to meet you Aisaka-san."

Sayo smiled in return and kept quiet, silently observing the boy as he returned to cleaning up and stacking books. He looked different than in the morning somehow, and it wasn't because of the light, or the slight change of attire. There's something else that she couldn't pinpoint no matter how she tried, and she abandoned the attempt to figure it out after awhile.

"So, why are you here, cleaning things up at this time?"

The boy looked up again, and an embarrassed look surfaced as he scratched the side of his face. "Someone asked me to clean the room up and get the pile of books he left in the room and I just…couldn't refuse I guess." He answered as he stacked the last of the books neatly on the pile and held them up with both hands.

"Oh…"

The boy steadied the books and took a few test steps. Satisfied that the pile won't fall he turned and smiled at the ghost. "Well, I'd best get going, it's getting a little late, and I don't think he would be too happy if he gets his things any later. So I'll see you later Aisaka-san, have a good night."

"And you too Creuzfeldt-sensei, see you tomorrow." Replied Sayo, waving as the boy made for the doorway. Said boy paused for a bit, then continued on his way, shutting the door with his foot. Taking up the pen again, Sayo too left the deserted room, floating through the walls and into the evening sky of Mahora.

* * *

He sighed as he stepped out of the building and into the schoolyard. It had been a hectic day for him, and the paperwork was murderous. The other teachers had had their day off much easier, as this isn't their first day at work, so they don't have stacks of forms to complete. The sky was already darkening when he left, and he could see the distant stars beginning to dot the night.

Shouldering his pack on his right, he set off towards the train that'll take him back to the dorms. Negi and his two students are probably having dinner by now, seating cross-legged under the warm, blanketed table with the expertly made dishes by Konoka laid neatly in front of them. The mere thought of food had had him realised how hungry he was now, as his stomached growled in protest. He hadn't eaten since breakfast, seeing his lunch break was forcefully cancelled by the looming mountains of paper that appeared during the time he waited for Negi outside the headmaster's room. Someone will pay for putting him through that torture.

Sighing again as his stomach grumbled for the second time, he hastened up his pace towards the train station, hoping to at least get a snack from the café as he wait for the next train to roll by. Absently he noticed that the street lights were lightening up, and he was the only person in the area. Not surprising, seeing how late it was, but it still feels a bit weird to see the place that was jammed pack with people in the morning being so desolated and silent now.

And then there's this nagging feeling that urges him to speed up even more. Paranoia, Alarich noted with slight exasperation, was an irritating thing.

Suddenly there's this sense of dread, and alarms were instantly wailing in his head. No sooner than when he twisted his body around, a searing pain shot out from his abdomen. Doubling up, a rush of boiling iron spiked up his throat, and he found himself coughing out a mouthful of crimson liquid. His sight blurred and disappeared for an instant, but returned as his brain reacted with remarkable speed. Tracing the pain to its source, there he found a slim arm in white sleeve, tainted red in areas cleanly through his body.

He coughed out another mouthful of blood, and looked up at his attacker. His brows furrowed, his eyes widened slightly, he took in the facial features of the female with her arm through him.

"…you…?"

Then his view plunged into nothingness.

* * *

_Well, I believe this is a suitable ending for this chapter. The 'Girl Who Snacks' is finally back, and had quite an important role in maiming the new boy, yes! Exams are finally ending, with only three more for me to bulldoze through. Thanks for all the support for this story, and for bearing with the agonizingly slow update speed. I can't stand it myself either, so I know I should've been paying more attention in writing than reading. Again, thanks for all the support from everyone, I never imagined this to get past five reviews when I first started writing this, so it's quite an ego boost! Hope you all enjoy the sudden turn (well, sort of, as it's pretty much predictable for this to happen…) of events, I'll try to strike up the next one as soon as possible, though that's probably not going to happen. Have a nice day everyone!_


	6. Spiral of the Colour Wheel

_**The Whispering Innocence **_

_A Mahou Sensei Negima (Magister Negi Magi) Fanfiction_

_By GaleBread_

_I do not own Mahou Sensei Negima. This is a work of Fanfiction and the materials are used without permission. All characters and settings of Mahou Sensei Negima are properties of Ken Akamatsu; no profits are made from this fictional work. Alarich von Creuzfeldt belongs to GaleBread._

AN: Alright, I admit I'm just being lazy, again. Originally I was going to get this chapter done for the anniversary, but somehow I remembered the date wrong, and only when I checked it again to see how long I have till the deadline did I realise that it has already passed. That sent me back into lethargy, and thus this came out even later than originally expected. Haha, my apologies to whatever readers I may still have, hopefully this chapter will be better than the overdone themes of the last (I regretted it, but then I'll stay with it as a reminder of what not to do).

* * *

**Chapter 6: Spiral of the Colour Wheel**

Aimlessly floating as she always did, residing within the classroom of 3A one Aisaka Sayo was gathering her thoughts on the day. It was something she did occasionally, to reminisce about the parts of the past she had cherished, even though her memories had faded away as time continued to flow. It was something she did, when there were interesting events happening in her seemingly unending life as a ghost.

'It probably is, too.' She thought, sighing quietly.

The notion of an unending existence may be quite tempting and sounded quite nice to some, but reality was different from fantasies and wishes. She knew that, because she's already dead, and it's more painful than fun most of the time. Constantly forced to observe as new classmates come and goes, as the school kept on changing and changing. Always she's left behind, a lonely thing of the past. Even the World Tree changes, growing new branches and aging normally, unlike her, who will never age again, forever locked in the ethereal body of a thirteen year old girl. As a ghost she can never die again, she knew that, because she lived as one for more than sixty years. Sixty years bound here, sixty years of loneliness, sixty years of grief.

And she knew, for her, there'd be more 'sixty years' to come.

A lot more.

Silently, she broke her chains of her thoughts with a shake of the head. Depression begets depression, and she had had enough depression to last her a life time and more. It was, after all, why she tried to be cheerful, to try and make new friends with her classmates. In sixty years this class was the first class to have someone notice her and not fear her. In sixty years this was the first time she had had the chance to meet new friends. In sixty years this was the first time her own time was not stalled but flowing, where she belonged not in the past but in the present, where she could make a change for once and people would _know_ about it.

That was why she had been gathering her thoughts more often than previous years, hoping to save every precious moment she encountered in this special year. The adventures the others talked about, the multitude of events of the Mahora Festival, and the meetings of new people throughout the year. She can still remember, the first time she saw the child teacher, the first time said teacher counted her unconsciously in the class checklist, and the first time he and Asakura sought her out and offered their friendship. It still brought a warm sensation to her chest every time she thought about it.

Then there was the person from that morning. A substitute teacher appeared for their homeroom class when Negi was summoned to the headmaster's office. While teachers substituting for one another weren't uncommon at all, not even being a foreigner of unknown origin, but rather the fact that he could see her without aid made him a much more unusual individual. For even without being told about the magical link needed for a person to be able to see a ghost, her many years of experience had already made it clear that no normal human can perceive the existence of a spirit. Some past student that once served as one of her classmates had remarked that the reason why humans cannot observe the presence of a ghost is because they actively denied the existence of spirits, consciously or subconsciously.

It must've been a subconscious denial for that classmate, for she could not see her either.

Silently, as she couldn't help be, she brought her train of thought back onto its original track. The substitute teacher, Alarich by name if memory still served, was a mystery even to someone like her, who had been around for more than sixty years, and doubtless more experienced in experiencing the variety of unusual events that occurs around the academy. It was this that sparked her interest in learning a bit more about him, for unlike Negi-sensei, the professor had no obvious goals here. While it could've been that he was here for the pay-check, his ability to see her, and his lack of concealment of such an ability, told her that his stay had a reason much more convoluted than a mere salary. To add to her curiosity, the professor gave her two different impressions on her two encounters with him. Something was different between the two times she met him, though what was different she could not yet pinpoint. Faintly she remembered that it had something to do with…something to do with…

"Huh?"

A single tear trickled unhindered down her porcelain face, leaving a small, clear trail until her hand brushed it aside. She stared at her moistened hand, wondering.

"Why am I…?" Sayo whispered softly even though no one could've been able to hear her, asking a question she knew no one would be there to answer. This … abnormal behaviour from her very own body, her very entirety of self … confused the ghost of Mahora. Somehow, she felt a torrent of emotions raged from within her, seemingly threatening to consume her whole consciousness. It was beginning to alarm the poltergeist, and it made her worried. Never had she, in her whole existence, experienced such strong emotional fluctuation. It was maddening, the feeling made her sick. She knew instantly, that this was not something that was meant to happen.

And then, so quietly, the emotion which manifested itself as the darkness that haunted the human race, embraced her fully.

Only to be pushed away, through a sudden surge of pain that coursed through her body. And as she clutched her head in an instinctive effort to quell the mind-breaking pain, a sudden clarity of thought made her stare out the windows and into the evening sky. There, through the clear, framed glass a lock of silver hair came into her view, and a silent shudder ran down her ghostly spine the moment she locked eyes with the face bellow it. Pained red stared into lifeless gold, and for a moment time seemed to have become still and unmoving. Then, the one with lifeless golden eyes broke the contact and continued on her way.

Sayo remained motionless, stunned beyond recognition as she struggled to comprehend what she saw. That thing … it … it was not normal, it should've never existed. That creature of the night belongs not in this world, not in the present. An abomination that should've never been born, an abomination that should've ceased to live more than half a dozen decades ago.

Then, her thoughts crumbled away almost as quick and silently. Jolted back to the physical realm, she flew through the walls without another thought, tailing the creature while anguish formed and swelled. Through the barely lit streets of the campus, through the woods of silence and darkness, through the ink black alleys between buildings she found herself on the path leading towards the public tram, one that transferred students between the dormitories, the city, and back.

It was on this very path she found herself at yet another scene of crimson.

That night was the reign of silence.

* * *

Barely a quarter of a shadow away, burgundy gleamed from its hiding place, a sickening taste of glee radiated from it as threads of life withered away.

And atop the ruined bell tower of the old chapel, stained with cerise and staring down the pathway, he watched without empathy.

* * *

"…-ome sev-…"

Light decimated the surrounding darkness, so strong that those who dwelled too long in such darkness had to hide and adjust to the change. A few more cycles of black and white passed through, and finally change was accepted and shown through the myriads of colours that hid behind it's blindingly brilliance. Consciousness, a concept delayed by sluggishness caused by the amount of time spent unconscious, returns with an easy pace, allowing for adaptation of the body, mind and soul.

"Oh, he's awake!"

Sound, distorted in the beginning, began to return to normalcy with the awakening. The sense of smell, too, returns, with the grace of fresh air and aroma of lily flowers, seen perched on top of a nearby metallic shelf. Lingering savour of iron signifies the homecoming of taste, and the dull yet burdensome pain of the abdomen tells the awakening of the sense of touch, and the significance of the damage sustained.

"Don't force yourself, Creuzfeldt-sensei, your injuries are quite severe and require minimal motion from you if it want to heal efficiently."

The voice of composed refinement and maturity came echoing into the adjusting listening organs, and time took its course till psychological functions restored to the level of understanding. The patient turned his head and looked at the nurse.

"Now, now, your injuries, as I said, are quite severe, and until they're healed to a satisfactory standard, which means at least two weeks, you'll be staying under my care. While I do promote the freedom of will, I will tell you now." The nurse, whose name escaped you for the moment, said with a wonderful smile. "Unless you have my permission, and I won't give you one until I deem you're good enough to stand up and walk, you're not to leave this bed. Meals will be supplied three times a day, so don't worry about being hungry. Am I clear?"

Staring at the nurse for a few monotonous seconds, Alarich answered with a quiet nod. The nurse, Shizuna her name he now remembered, returned the nod.

"Good. It's comforting to see that reasonable individuals still exist in this campus."

"I beg your pardon?"

"Oh! Do ignore my slip of the tongue. Now, please relax for a bit, Takahata-sensei should be coming in shortly." She said with a nod and smile, then pulled the nearby blinds up letting the high noon sunlight streaming into the room. Alarich's gaze followed her as she walked off into her office, and turned his sight towards the windows afterwards, sighing softly.

"I…should've died…she would've killed me…right? So why…" He paused, closed his eyes and massaged his temple in slight frustration. "…No, never mind, it doesn't matter now…"

"I see you're in good spirits, Creuzfeldt-sensei."

Diverting his attention towards the source of the new voice, Alarich offered the professor a smile and a nod. "I suppose you could say that. It's good to see you, Takahata-sensei."

The bespectacled teacher returned the gesture and took a seat nearby, seemingly unperturbed by the recent chaos erupting around the country. "Yes, it is quite a relief to see you are still alive and well. You were in quite a predicament when Kataragi and Shakti pulled you in."

The substitute chuckled morosely. "The way you say it doesn't make me feel any better."

"My apologies." The former homeroom teacher said calmly, adjusting his glasses with a light push of his fingers. "I assume you know why I'm here."

"I guess I do, unfortunately. Although I'd prefer if you're here as having concerns for a friend, I suppose saying we're friends is stretching it a bit." Responded the bedridden boy. He gazed back out the window forlornly. "Yes, I did see her face, albeit rather briefly."

"Her?" The bearded man inquired, tapping his fingers in rhythms against the counter. "So the assailant is a female?"

Sparing a glance at the older male, Alarich nodded solemnly. "Yes, she is. Silvery hair and…golden eyes. Wears something white and long-sleeved, and…too old to be a middle school student. An undergraduate perhaps, but not a middle-schooler."

Continuing the soft drumming of his fingers, Takahata took in the information he learned so far. Relative silence permeates until he broke it with a definite humming. Standing up with a fluid motion, he smiled affably at the injured boy and headed for the door after a brief exchange of farewells.

Only to pause as he spoke in an amiable nature. "A thing to bear in mind, Creuzfeldt-sensei." He pulled out a cigarette, then stopped midway and returned it to the box. "Appearances are not always accurate, especially within the Mahora school grounds. A class you've substituted would be an interesting take on the matter, so while your help is appreciated, I fear it'll not be assisting much. Still, thank you, so rest and relax, we'll take care of our own problems."

The professor rotated his head slightly with a cordial smirk. "The headmaster had also asked me to…inform you that your position is secured once you recover. Have a good day."

And he left the room without another word.

* * *

He stared with a pair of weathered eyes upon the fortress, the sanctuary of the one whom he sought. It had always been apparent; though he was once a fool, and aggrieved he may have been but he could not be forgiven for ever hoping that everything was not related. Now he stands, before the failing doors of the decrepit clock tower, and truth lay bare in front of him. His choices were now gone, though he doubted he was ever given a choice. No, perhaps he already knew so long ago, knew that he had never had a choice to begin with.

The rotting doors of wood creaked with a whispering menace, as if to announce the entrance of yet another victim into the icy depths of its inner sanctum. Yet he paid no mind to such trivial matters, for he came only to do what he must, what he should've done when it all happened.

Steps light as a feather, he moved with an unusual nimbleness which a normal audience would've failed to expect from him. However, he had seen much, experienced much, and knew there was no normal audience in this crumbling building of stone and wood. He was expected, he knew. He was insurmountably superior in power, they both knew. The totality of darkness and the unknown state of the arena would be his greatest enemy, this too, they both knew.

So, with soundless step the interior of the clock tower lit up with the radiance of burning stars. The flash of light blinded his enemy as he made his move. Yet through the air his foe had recovered and prepared a counter, hard of strike, merciless in effort. The intruder to the clock tower wordlessly sidesteps to aside, ever calm, ever deadly. The efficiency of years of experience was neither hindered by his weathered body, nor by the extended peace within the community he oversaw and lived in. Reflex, honed to a level beyond razor sharp, allowed him to prevail against the continuation of a combo from his opponent.

He flicked his hand.

The habitant of the decrepit place screeched as his body was flung across the room and through the rotting doors leading to the staircase chamber. He would not fall so easily, however. A violent burst sent debris flying at all directions and as he stood back up he was prepared to return the favour. The intruder gave no such chance.

A palm struck out and hit the tower dweller hard upon his head, magical power cracking dangerously as the attack sunk in and removed the recipient from the ground again. Then, before the body returns to earth, a second strike pounded upon the man. He remained airborne, an audible crack signifying severe internal damage as bones fractured and punctured vital organs. A third follow-up strike to the back sent him crashing to the stone hard floor, raising a cloud of dust and leaving a splattering of crimson blood. He still lived, barely, but lived nonetheless.

The victor stared at the seemingly lifeless body of the defeated, the illumination of the spell prior giving him a second chance for confirmation. He grimaced as some of his many hypotheses were proven true. He could do no more, interfere no more. To do so may create complications on this already complicated matter. He could now guide, but not act, for he had his obligations to the academy, and it demanded from him the utmost attention to upholding safety. To his staff, to his students, to his family.

Quietly, the headmaster departed from the battlefield, leaving behind the fallen to his fate.

* * *

Sitting up on his bed, Alarich attempted and failed to alleviate the agonizing boredom that seemed to be a permanent part of this place. He had tried multitude of methods, ranging from staring at the ceiling for an unknown amount of time, to humming out songs he heard in the past, to day dreaming about nothing at all. None of them worked, and this monotony was driving him crazy. He had already slept for god knows how long, and coupled with the time he spent unconscious the time before, he don't feel like falling back to the land of dreams any time soon.

"For the love of whoever that's up there, someone say something. I'm going to die from this torture soon…"

* * *

"So, mind telling me what's bothering you, Sayo?"

Wandering within the hallways of Mahora Academy's dormitories, looking around half-heartedly and subconsciously tinkering with her digital camera, Kazumi Asakura was worried about her spirit friend. Sayo hadn't said a word the whole day, and looked as if she saw a ghost. Kazumi stifled a chuckle; this was not the time to laugh at some self-crafted lame jokes, no matter how brilliant she might think it was. Part of her was curious though, as was natural for her, about the thing that stunned her friend. She never really made any real attempts to probe her friend about it for most of the day, but the silence was getting to her and silence usually made her desire to discover grow.

She did, however, respect the wishes of the people around her.

So instead, she merely asked for an explanation. It was not her decision if her ghostly friend wished to discuss the matter, however worried Kazumi may be. Of course, she really hoped Sayo would tell her what went wrong, but if Sayo wanted to deal with the problem alone then she could not interfere. She stole a glance at her silent companion.

"…It's about the attack last night, was it?"

She had heard the rumours, of course. Being a reporter for the academy, a person who almost inevitably was the first to come across any unusual materials, Kazumi had known about the incident within an hour after she woke up. It was a brutal scene, as the rumours spread, with blood spilling over to the crevices of the stone pathways. Some even said it took the cleaners the whole night to clean everything up, but when Kazumi tracked down and interrogated a janitor, he looked genuinely confused. She had spent the whole morning before school investigating the incident, even making her way to the medical rooms to look for evidence, which she was forbidden entry by the nurse Shizuna. Something stunk, she knew, but her school schedule prevented her from digging further, and then the matter with Sayo almost totally dissolved the event from her mind.

That was, until now. Slowly putting the pieces together, Kazumi grimaced as her friend continued in absolute silence. She had a bad feeling about this.

"…You were there, weren't you."

It was not a question. Kazumi knew she was right. She just hoped her companion would say otherwise.

When Sayo responded with a nod, that hope was shattered. Kazumi slowed her pace, eyes closed as she breathed in deeply and recollected her composure, feverishly trying to calm herself down. After a moment of recollection, she reopened her eyes and looked worriedly at her spirit companion. "You weren't hurt, were you?" she asked uncertainly, "I don't really know if ghost can be injured, but please, tell me that whoever or whatever was there didn't hurt you?"

"I…"

This was the first word Sayo uttered that day, and just doing so Kazumi felt a huge weight lifted from her soul. Her friend's still responsive, that itself was the most important reassurance, that she didn't lose her friend was all that mattered.

"I am fine, Kazumi-san…" Sayo spoke softly, "I…I'm just…"

"Hey, it's alright you know, anyone would be afraid if they see something like this happening." Kazumi smiled warmly at her friend, "I'm just glad you weren't hurt."

"But…I couldn't…couldn't do anything…"

"Sayo, this…I don't think this is something you could've done something about." The fiery-haired reporter said, uncertainly. She knew Sayo wouldn't feel any better, even though what she said was true, that her ghostly friend wouldn't be able to stop it happening. Perhaps, Kazumi reasoned, perhaps her friend just didn't want to see another soul be taken into the cruelty of eternal existence. Then, Kazumi felt a small comfort as the thought passed through her mind. At least, she argued, at least now Sayo is free from the loneliness. Looking up onto the distraught face of her friend, Kazumi gave the ghost her most supporting smile. "Hey, if you're so worried about it, then just go and check up on the victim. Apologise too, if it makes you feel better."

"Just, whatever you do, keep on smiling. That way you will always be content."

The girl that passed-away fixed her sight on her friend, mouth slightly agape at the comment. That…that didn't sound like her friend at all…

Then, Kazumi grinned slyly.

"Of course, this also gives me a good excuse to get myself a special, first-hand interview! Come on, let's go!"

Silvery strands glittered under the hallway lights, and the girl cracked a smile as she followed after her best friend towards the infirmary. Oh, that was her friend alright.


End file.
